Ever since stepping foot in F1, Max Verstappen has earned the reputation of being an aggressive driver. Some, including his fellow drivers, have accused him of sometimes being too aggressive. The Dutchman has often come under the stewards’ radar for pushing others off the track or making some borderline dangerous maneuvers while defending. Lately, his radio messages have garnered hate over the internet. Is F1 media responsible for creating a bad-boy image of the reigning champion?

Depending on which side of the spectrum one is- Verstappen supporter or otherwise, opinions differ. Christian Horner, Red Bull team principal, has in the past termed his aggressive driving style as his form of defense. Lewis Hamilton, on the other hand, termed it a “do-or-die approach”. Recently, after his little skirmish with George Russell during the Sprint Race, the Red Bull driver once again came under heavy criticism.

F1 media slammed for demonizing Max Verstappen among the fans

After getting off to a great start during the Sprint, Russell overtook Verstappen. But the battle for P3 quickly intensified in Turn 3 when Max attacked him from around the outside and did not find sufficient space. Resultantly, the duo came together that saw the Dutchman take damage to his floor and bodywork. Following that and his subsequent overtake later, he made some sarcastic comments about the Briton on the team radio.

Now, the Dutch newspaper, De Telegraaf’s Erik van Haren, has criticized F1 media for their social media posts where they overly capitalized on Max’s aggressive instances. Erik wrote, “The numbers of the videos on the official social media channels of the royal class went through the roof on Saturday. On Instagram alone, five different posts were devoted to the incident between the drivers. All wonderful, but if you take a look at the reactions under those videos, you will also see a huge hate campaign towards Verstappen.” [Translated using Google]

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Erik also talked about how F1 has in the past done the same with other champions, including Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel.

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As if his outburst on the team radio wasn’t enough, Verstappen cornered Russell in the parc ferme after the Sprint. During their confrontation, the cameras picked up on Max calling him a “d**ckhead“. That again subjected him to some criticism from fans and experts alike.

During Sky F1’s live broadcast, Damon Hill said, “If you cast your mind back to Monza with Lewis Hamilton, he (Verstappen) just didn’t back out of the corner, did he? So, he’s done it himself. He’s a hard racer. They’re both hard racers, George and Max. And this is what happens when you get a rock and hard place together.”

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Do you think the defending champion getting criticism is unwarranted? Or has he brought it upon himself by being too full of himself?